First electric pickup

[Hersbird]

Originally Posted by Rednight

Well we need to advance the technology, were not always going to have access to crude oil based fuels. Bio fuels and plastics still have a ways to go to be self sustainable. Tesla may not have it perfected but at least he is stepping up. Without innovators like him we would all be in varying versions of a Conestoga wagon. Just my 2 cents.

We can start making diesel out of coal and have another 200 years of it though.

[moose074]

Let’s see how many electric plants still run on petroleum or coal. How often are we told to prepare for rolling blackouts during extreme cold or heat. How many customers in California lost power because the electric company got sued for starting a fire. So now in high wind they shut down. It’s not the cars or trucks it’s whole electrical infrastructure that has me concerned.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

We can start making diesel out of coal and have another 200 years of it though.

If I recall my history lessons correctly, the first engines the inventor of the CI engine worked with tried powdered coal as fuel.

I believe explosions put an end to them.

[Hersbird]

Originally Posted by TitanMike

If I recall my history lessons correctly, the first engines the inventor of the CI engine worked with tried powdered coal as fuel.

I believe explosions put an end to them.

Not powdered, but liquified. The Germans ran their whole WW2 war machine on the stuff. My belief is we will use every drop of oil, every puff of natural gas, and every chunk of coal we can get to at some point. People can say coal is dead but in 50 or 100 years when we run out of crude oil the people not even born today may have other ideas. They may decide to go back to whale oil for all we can know.

[Cowracer]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

Not powdered, but liquified. The Germans ran their whole WW2 war machine on the stuff. My belief is we will use every drop of oil, every puff of natural gas, and every chunk of coal we can get to at some point. People can say coal is dead but in 50 or 100 years when we run out of crude oil the people not even born today may have other ideas. They may decide to go back to whale oil for all we can know.

We've been running out of crude oil since Edwin Drake sank the first well. All we have really 'run out of' is the easy-to-get-to oil. There's more oil still down there than we have pumped out of the ground in all our history. Some even say two times that amount. Due to advances in extraction technology, the global reserves could double by 2050.

We are not in danger of running out of oil.

Tim

[Hersbird]

Originally Posted by Cowracer

We've been running out of crude oil since Edwin Drake sank the first well. All we have really 'run out of' is the easy-to-get-to oil. There's more oil still down there than we have pumped out of the ground in all our history. Some even say two times that amount. Due to advances in extraction technology, the global reserves could double by 2050.

We are not in danger of running out of oil.

Tim

Well that first well really wasn't that long ago, I guess I think in a bit longer scales, we will deplete the oil one day. I think in about 100 years it will be scarce enough to preclude burning it to move vehicles around. Then we will switch more to coal either generating electricity to move cars or through liquified coal or both. That give up probably another 100 years or more as we finally switch to Nuclear.

[Lins]

I like that someone is trying to do something different. I don't want that truck, but someone will, and you'll probably see a few driving around urban areas. Great. Then I can keep my fossil fuel vehicles till someone comes out with something I do want to buy and does what I need. Here's a neat fossil fuel alternative I read a little while ago:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesco.../#66ccf49a13cc

[Cowracer]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

Well that first well really wasn't that long ago, I guess I think in a bit longer scales, we will deplete the oil one day. I think in about 100 years it will be scarce enough to preclude burning it to move vehicles around. Then we will switch more to coal either generating electricity to move cars or through liquified coal or both. That give up probably another 100 years or more as we finally switch to Nuclear.

The reason we use petroleum is that it was/is cheap and plentiful. Bonus is that its convenient. It's easily made into liquid, which offers many benefits in storage, transportation and use. There is literally no other material that comes close.

As such, our entire motor fuel infrastructure is based on liquid fuels. To come off of that paradigm involves a commitment from both fuel distributors AND consumers. IE... nobody wants an electric car if you can't get a recharge (fuel) away from home. And nobody wants to invest in building recharging stations if there is nobody buying electric cars. I credit Elon Musk for the impetus that will break this circular stalemate, and change us to an electric infrastructure. The guy is bat-guano crazy, but sometimes, crazy changes the world.

People speak of "running out of oil" as a catastrophe. It won't be. It will be one of the greatest events in industrial human civilization. Right now, with us literally floating on an ocean of cheap oil, there is little economic benefit to develop alternatives. Remember when e85 and other biofuels were going to save us, and put us on the ethanol economy instead of a petroleum one. That was when oil was $140-ish a barrel. That whole industry went *poof* when oil prices slumped. When the last drop of oil is pumped out of the earth, we will finally turn away from such things and develop a way to easily store and use hydrogen without high pressures or super-low temperatures.

But it seems oil is here to stay, at least for at least as long as we are all alive.

Tim

[D W]

I remember back in 1967 or 68, a guy from the Midwest was featured in a Popular Science article who had invented a water injection system for the internal combustion engine. The process would vaporize the water under vacuum and utilize the Hydrogen and Oxygen to enrich the motor fuel. IIRC he stated that it would add 10 mpg to leaded gasoline. After the article appeared, the device was offered for sale in the back pages of Popular Science for Carter & Rochester carburetors for $49.99, which was fair chunk of change back then considering gasoline was $.30/gal. Within 3 months an unnamed oil company made this guy an offer he couldn't refuse buying up the blue prints, patent and rights lock, stock and barrel. The device then disappeared from the market.

[rockfordroo]

Originally Posted by D W

I remember back in 1967 or 68, a guy from the Midwest was featured in a Popular Science article who had invented a water injection system for the internal combustion engine. The process would vaporize the water under vacuum and utilize the Hydrogen and Oxygen to enrich the motor fuel. IIRC he stated that it would add 10 mpg to leaded gasoline. After the article appeared, the device was offered for sale in the back pages of Popular Science for Carter & Rochester carburetors for $49.99, which was fair chunk of change back then considering gasoline was $.30/gal. Within 3 months an unnamed oil company made this guy an offer he couldn't refuse buying up the blue prints, patent and rights lock, stock and barrel. The device then disappeared from the market.

Water injection has been used in aircraft since at least WWII. I don't think your guy thought of anything new. Except maybe making it affordable in autos?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_injection_(engine)

[TheWolfPaq82]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

Well that first well really wasn't that long ago, I guess I think in a bit longer scales, we will deplete the oil one day. I think in about 100 years it will be scarce enough to preclude burning it to move vehicles around. Then we will switch more to coal either generating electricity to move cars or through liquified coal or both. That give up probably another 100 years or more as we finally switch to Nuclear.

50 years ago, I had science teachers and others preaching that we'd run out of oil in 50 years. Well guess what ? 50 years later we have 10 times the oil they predicted we'd have and are now the largest producing nation in the world. Has it occurred to anyone that maybe oil fields are "renewable" ? and the process that produces underground oil....may still be going on ?

[Oaklevel]

My comment it is one ugly truck ????



uglier than mine...............

As far as charging stations the campground we go to already has two electric vehicle charging stations still no charge $ as of now...... till they can figure out how....

[SmittyCorp]

I think the thread title is misleading, because it's incorrect. 1997 and 1998 GM sold electric S10s. And in 98 thru 02, Ford sold elecric Rangers. And yeah, they weren't very good.

The Tesla isn't even guaranteed to be the first "modern" electric truck. By the time tesla starts making them, Rivian, Atlis, GM, and Ford may have electric trucks on the road. I'd also bet these trucks won't be quite as hideous as the tesla.

I'm not interested in an electric pickup right now. They won't work for my needs. But if I'm ever forced to get one, you can sure bet I won't pick the ugly tesla. Not to mention I don't care to support Elon the egomaniac jerk, no matter how good his products may be.

[rockfordroo]

There were electric trucks in the 1910's. Not exactly "pickup trucks," but trucks none-the-less (cab in front, bed in rear). At that time, about 1/3 of all vehicles on the road were electric. Of course in those days, the farthest most people drove was a few miles.

They suffered from the same issues faced today: lack of range and slow recharging. Although it IS improving, albeit slowly.

[SailorSam20500]

I had an opportunity to participate in a "Deep Dive & Drive" of the 2020 Escape. As part of the the event, they had a display of the 4 generations of battery setups. Amazingly, the current version is about 1/4 the size/weight of the original. To the point, it is mounted such that it has near zero impact on interior space of the hybrid vs gas engines. Also, they will have battery charging capability while driving. If I heard correctly, the vehicle will have an electric only range of about 30 miles.

I was very impressed with the pick-up. After flooring the pedal, we got going a lot faster than I expected. I didn't smoke tires, but that is only because the engineers have governors on the output...
One interesting comment from one of the engineers: Governments are moving to legislate that access to certain city centers will be restricted to zero emission vehicles. So having something that can drive on electric when needed may become a requirement.

After driving around in the hybrid, I could see myself getting a hybrid F-150, assuming minimal payload impact and sufficient tow capacity. I know there is an after-market company doing F-150 hybrid conversions for comerical use. Basically to provide some electric oomph during acceleration where a lot of gas is normally burned. Sounds like Ford will be introducing an OEM version of that for the masses in the next year or so.

[Lins]

Originally Posted by SmittyCorp

Not to mention I don't care to support Elon the egomaniac jerk, no matter how good his products may be.

Although I agree for the most part, I am thankful for people like him for forcing the bigger manufacturers to pick up their game instead of keeping their technology locked away.

[Hersbird]

Originally Posted by TheWolfPaq82

50 years ago, I had science teachers and others preaching that we'd run out of oil in 50 years. Well guess what ? 50 years later we have 10 times the oil they predicted we'd have and are now the largest producing nation in the world. Has it occurred to anyone that maybe oil fields are "renewable" ? and the process that produces underground oil....may still be going on ?

I actually do secretly believe that. "Fossil" fuel is not entirely correct. Other planets with no evidence of ever having fossils have "fossil" fuel. So hydrocarbon fuel would be more accurate and obviously its known presence on other planets and moons means it's production is not entirely the result of compressed fossils over millions of years.

[D W]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

I actually do secretly believe that. "Fossil" fuel is not entirely correct. Other planets with no evidence of ever having fossils have "fossil" fuel. So hydrocarbon fuel would be more accurate and obviously its known presence on other planets and moons means it's production is not entirely the result of compressed fossils over millions of years.

For the sake of argument, let's just say that we are carbon-based life forms living on a carbon-based planet.

[Kcoulter]

https://insideevs.com/news/386402/te...l-trailer/amp/

[RACarvalho]

Originally Posted by Lins

Although I agree for the most part, I am thankful for people like him for forcing the bigger manufacturers to pick up their game instead of keeping their technology locked away.

He is not forcing anything.
Who is forcing something is the government with their communist EPA "targets" (our pockets).
The big manufacturers don't go there by themselves because there is not a business case that support it - there is no profit there.
IF most of consumers where willing to pay more to have less, MAYBE they would move in that direction but electricity as source of energy for transportation brings no benefit to consumers so no business case that justify it.
The only way electricity goes forward is by government interference which gives us nothing but higher bills.